Reel



H. A. WILSON June 18, 1968 REEL 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Nov. 15. 1966 June .18, 1968 H. A. WILSON 3,388,876

REEL

Filed NOV. 15, 1966 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 Q I 5?," INVENTOR- HENRQ RLLEN United States Patent 3,388,876 REEL Henry Allen Wilson, 1000 Eldorado Ava, Clearwater Beach, Fla. 33515 Filed Nov. 15, 1966, Ser. No. 594,475 Claims. (Cl. 242-96) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A reel for winding a coil of rope having means for separating the pulley sections to allow removal of the coil. In one form of the invention the pulley sections are releasably locked by tabs and a keeper Spring. In another form the pulley sections are releasably locked together by means of a bayonet joint.

This invention relates to a hand rope coiling reel and more particularly to a reel for providing a uniformly wound towing rope for skiers use.

In this sport of Water skiing the skier is towed by the movement of a powered craft by means of a rope which is secured to the craft at one end and held by the skier rat the other end. By proper manipulation of the skiing equipment the skier is able to skim over the surface of the water. However, when this locomotion ceases for any reason the skier will sink rapidly in the water. In order to get started the skier is usually deep in the water with the skiing equipment on his feet and the coil of tow rope in his hands. When the towing craft is started there is a great strain on the body of the skier to cope with the necessary starting acceleration as is required to reach the proper skiing speed. Hence, one end portion of the towing rope is usually formed into a coil and held loosely in the hand from which it is gradually payed out to reduce as much as possible the strain caused by the starting acceleration.

The rope coiling and coil releasing features of this invention are also of valuable use in the handling of the usual heaving rope in providing a coil which may be tossed or thrown for a long distance from a ships deck to the floor of a wharf without the change of tangling or knotting etc.

It is an object of this invention to produce a tow rope coiling reel for uniformly winding a tow rope into a coil thereon and from which said coil may be readily removed intact.

It is a further object of this invention to provide a separable reel as aforesaid on which the tow rope will be uniformly wound on repeated operations thereof.

It is a further object of this invention to produce a reel as aforesaid which can be rapidly separated to release the coil intact as wound thereon.

It is a further object of this invention to produce a reel as aforesaid which may be rapidly assembled after each winding operation.

It is a further object of this invention to produce .a reel as aforesaid which can be held in the hand and be operated to uniformly wind a tow rope into a coil to be removed therefrom.

These and other objects of this invention will become manifest upon reading the following description in conjunction With the accompanying drawing wherein:

FIG. 1 is a side view of the reel;

FIG. 2 is a section taken on the line 2-2 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a side view of a modified form of the invention; and

'FIG. 4 is an exploded view of FIG. 3 showing parts of FIG. 3 in section and showing the removal of the coil of rope.

"ice

The reel of the invention comprises a hub 2 in the form of an annulus having a peripheral groove 4 and a rod 6 secured by the ends to the annulus along a diameter thereof. A pulley comprising abutting flange sections 8 and 10 is rotatably mounted on the hub and is formed with a handle 12. The section 8 is provided with a pair of openings 14 and an inner groove or raceway 16 is formed around the inner periphery for cooperation with groove 4 to form a raceway for hearing balls 18 which fill the raceway. The section 10 is formed with a pair of axially extending portions 20 having radial legs 22 integral therewith to form tabs. A spring 24 is secured to the section 8 as by a rivet 25 and is bent to extend through an opening 26 and engage section 10. The section 10 is formed with a flattened zone 28 and the spring is formed With an extension 30. The spring is sufficiently stiff to maintain the legs 22 in engagement with section 3 and to support section 10 under the stress of reeling. However, one of the sections 8 or 10 can be supplied with projections 32 and the other section with cooperating holes in order to ensure the concentricity of the pulley sections.

In use, the rope is wound onto the pulley by holding rod 6 with one hand and rotating the pulley by handle 12 with the other hand. When the winding operation is completed the pulley sections are separated by a lateral pull on section 10 to free it from spring 24 and the tabs are withdrawn from the openings 14. The coiled rope is then removed and the pulley sections reassembled by inserting the tabs in the openings and pivoting section 10, about an axis defined by a chord joining the tabs, into engagement with extension 30 of spring 24. Pressure against the extension will depress the spring and allow the pulley sections to abut.

In the form of the invention shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 an annular hub 42 is made of abutting sections 44 and 46 of a plastic material adhered together in a plane by a suitable adhesive to form an inner race of a ball bearing. The outer race of the bearing is formed of abutting sections 48, 50 of a suitable plastic material and adhered together in a plane 49 by a suitable adhesive. The section 48 is formed with an integral flange 52. A hand grip 54 in the form of a tubular rod is secured by the ends to the inner race and a series of balls 56 fills the raceway to provide an anti-friction hearing.

The pulley portion of the reel is made of sections 58 and 60 of a suitable plastic material. The section 60 is adhered to flange 52 by a suitable adhesive and is formed with a plurality of T-shaped openings 62. The section 58 is integrally formed with tabs 64 which are arranged to fit through the openings 62 and to lock sections 58 and 60 together by relative rotation of the sections. In the locked position the vertical portions of the tabs fit behind section 60 to retain the parts assembled.

A guide member 66 is secured to the inner race and comprises a portion 68 provided with a lateral extension 70 having an opening 72 through which is trained the rope to be wound. The radially inner end 68 of the guide is adhered to the inner race by a suitable adhesive and the opening 72 is positioned over the central plane of the reel.

In use, the rope is wound on the reel by rotation of a handle 74 secured to reel section 58 till a coil is formed in the reel as shown in dotted lines in FIG. 4. The reel sections 58 and 60 are then separated by relative rotation to move the tabs 64 of the bayonet joint to the enlarged portion of openings 62. The formed coil is then removed as shown in full lines in FIG. 4.

I claim:

1. A ski rope reel comprising a hub, a pulley having a peripheral groove rotatably mounted on the hub, and a handle secured to the pulley for rotating the pulley on the hub, said pulley comprising abutting fiange sections defining the groove, one of said sections being mounted on the hub and releasable locking means for locking the other section in abutting position on said first section.

2. A device as defined in claim 1 wherein the locking means comprises peripherally spaced openings in one of the sections, peripherally spaced tabs on the other of the sections fitted through and interlocking with the Openings, and spring means spaced from the interlocking tabs and openings for yieldably urging the sections into abutting engagement.

3. A device as defined in claim 2 wherein the tabs comprise axially extending portions extending through the openings and radially extending legs on said axially extending portions.

4. A device as defined in claim 2 wherein the spring means comprises a leaf spring secured to one of the sections in overlapping engagement with the other of the sections.

5. A device as defined in claim 4 further including supporting and centering means comprising at least one projection on one of the sections fitted in a cooperating aperture means in the other of the sections, said projection and aperture means being adjacent the spring.

6. A device as defined in claim 1 wherein the hub is 25 an annulus and a rod is secured to the annulus along a diameter thereof to serve as a gripping handle.

7. A device as defined in claim 6 wherein the periphery of the hub is formed with a groove to form an inner race for a bearing and one of the flange sections is formed with a race facing the inner race and antifriction elements are mounted in the raceways.

8. A device as defined in claim 7 wherein the antifriction elements are balls.

9. A device as defined in claim 1 wherein the locking means comprises a plurality of tabs on one of the sections and a plurality of openings in the other section to form a bayonet joint.

10. A device as defined in claim 9 further including a guide fixedly secured to the hub and provided with an opening over the groove.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 664,640 12/1900 Huebner 242-96 1,455,343 5/1923 Leber 242-96 2,250,281 7/1941 Sundstrand 242-96 3,006,574 10/1961 Hardy 242--96 3,289,968 12/1966 Wilson 242-96 FRANK I. COHEN, Primary Examiner.

N. L. MINTZ, Assistant Examiner. 

